MONONA MUNCHIES 2014, 2015, AND BEYOND

COMMITTED VOLUNTEERS…

+ HUNGRY EATERS…

= Monona Munchies!

HOW WE BEGAN: In April 2014, Margaret Clark, of IHM, read an article in the State Journal about a similar program in De Forest. A program that was designed to feed children who were receiving Free or Reduced Meals through the federal nutrition programs during the school year, but for whom that food source was unavailable during the summer.

FIRST STEPS: Margaret called the Monona School District office and found out that approximately 32% of students at Winnequah Elementary receive Free or Reduced Meals. This meant that 1 in 3 children might be hungry during the summer as families struggled to figure out where that additional food might come from. She decided to do something about it!

A TEAM IS CREATED… Margaret’s first steps included contacting other Monona area churches. Those that responded were St. Stephen’s Lutheran and Monona United Methodist. Representatives from each of these churches met in Margaret’s office and discussed the possibility of offering a food program in Monona, roughly based off the one in De Forest.

MONONA MUNCHIES IS BORN!

STEP #2: IDENTIFY A VENUE AND RESOURCES From the very beginning, Monona Parks and Recreation has been a full partner in the Monona Munchies program. They have graciously allowed us to use the Community Center kitchen for food and equipment storage, and offered Schaefer Park as an ideal serving spot for our meals, free of charge.

WHY SCHAEFER PARK? Location, Location, Location!

CLOSE TO MONONA’S FAMILIES! *Swimming Pool *Winnequah Elementary *Monona Library *Dream Park

“SHOW ME THE MONEY!” Last summer, we received approximately $1500 in private donations—mostly from members of the three supporting congregations. In addition, the program benefitted from several “in kind” donations of food from various individuals and organizations, and receipt of baked goods from the St. Stephen’s Food Pantry.

FUTURE $$ …and the St. Stephen’s Food Pantry supplied a good portion of the bread products. Last year’s funds were enough to carry us through this summer, too—partly based on the fact that many of the grocery shoppers did not submit receipts…

DAYS AND TIMES: We served lunches from 11:45-12:30 each weekday, during Summer School. When Summer School was done, we served lunches Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. This was a change from last year. We were striving to strike a balance between ending the program at the end of Summer School when the numbers of eaters dropped off precipitously, and having food available for those who continued to rely on the program.

Spreading the Word…

THE HERALD-INDEPENDENT

FLYERS! *Around the Community *Sent home in kids’ backpacks

SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN

SUMMER SCHOOL ANNOUNCEMENTS: Mrs. Ann Schroeder announced the program every morning at Winnequah’s summer school!

NOTES IN CHURCH BULLETINS AND NEWSLETTERS

MONONA MESSENGER S AND PARKS AND REC WEBSITE

WHO IS COMING TO EAT? Our numbers ranged from zero to 45 eaters per day, with roughly 25% of them returning for 2nds. While summer school was in session, there were from 19 to 45 eaters each day, with a median number of 31. Many of the children came unaccompanied. Once summer school was finished, there were from zero to 23 eaters, with a median number of 11. Almost all the children came with a caregiver.

NEXT STEPS… *Find additional ways to reach out to our target population. *Identify on-going donors and/or sources of financial support.

NEXT STEPS… *Enlist the support and publicity of local celebrities. *Investigate the feasibility/process of designating Munchies as a 501c3 organization (or something similar).